EDITORIAL: Qualities to look for in city's next police chief

Cincinnati City Manager Milton Dohoney Jr. will soon makeone of the biggest decisions of his tenure, and it won'thave anything to do with parking or streetcars.

Dohoney, with the help of a team of citizen advisers, will choose the next Cincinnati police chief, the leader who will command a force of 1,300 people, spend a budget of $138 million and assume responsibility for public safety in the core city of our metro region.

It's encouraging that Dohoney has assembled a team of people from diverse backgrounds and experiences to advise him on the choice. We hope they evaluate each candidate on these principles:

? Urban policing

Experience with urban policing. Cincinnati is a big city with big-city problems such as poverty, drugs and violence. Management experience in a big city is essential.

? Community-Oriented policing

Experience with community-oriented policing and an understanding of the importance of working with the urban neighborhoods. This method of policing goes beyond responding to crimes and is focused on building relationships in neighborhoods to establish respect, trust and cooperation with law enforcement.

? Police-community collaboration

A commitment to Cincinnati's police-community collaborative agreement. This is the formal agreement that ended a lawsuit by the ACLU and community activists over racial profiling. The agreement has expired, but its principles remain: a preference for problem-solving over enforcement; viewing community members as partners; improving education, training and hiring of officers.

? Vision

The ability to consult with outside sources and use data to forecast crime trends. If prevention of crime is the top priority, the ability to look ahead is critical.

? Forward thinking

New ideas for sharing services and collaborating with the Hamilton County Sheriff's Office and other law-enforcement agencies. The new sheriff, Jim Neil, is looking with fresh eyes at how his office can work with other agencies. It's a natural that he work with the Cincinnati police and look for ways to provide the same, or better service, more efficiently.

? Budget Innovation

Innovation in handling declining budgets. We are in a new era of scarcer resources for all taxpayer-funded services, yet problems of crime and violence are not declining.

? Communication

A commitment to open and timely communication with the public, including the media, to respond quickly to controversies and matters of public interest.

? Management

A progressive and straightforward management style that clearly articulates the standards of conduct for street officers. The new chief must be able to transfer those values from the top to middle management, then most importantly to line officers.

? Training

A commitment to continuously improve training, especially in how officers interact with the mentally ill.

? Collaboration

An interest in collaborating on services that don't officially fall under the law enforcement umbrella, but that make neighborhoods safer. This includes advocating for services such as housing inspectors and other programs that play roles in making communities safer. It's not just policing that makes for safe communities.

? Diversity

The willingness to seize opportunities to promote women into positions of leadership. Elevating qualified women into high-profile positions will help the department in its mission to become a true community partner.

? Personality

It's an intangible asset, but the personality of a caring leader, tough yet exhibiting a genuine concern for the community, for crime victims and, yes, for offenders, is essential. This was a strength of James Craig, who met with the families of homicide victims and would appear at scenes of violent crime to project a calming presence. This may be intangible, but it's a foundation of the police department's image with the public, and that's essential for community cooperation and trust. ■

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EDITORIAL: Qualities to look for in city's next police chief

Dohoney, with the help of a team of citizen advisers, will choose the next Cincinnati police chief, the leader who will command a force of 1,300 people, spend a budget of $138 million and assume